But for now let’s get to the match reports! We had 6 rounds of swiss into top8.

Round 1, Storm

I sit down with a very nice guy and chatter about this and that. Shuffle the decks, wish good luck and begin the action!

Game 1 I keep a bit risky hand with lands, Baral and rituals but no cantrips to help dig. He mulligans to 5. I still decided to keep since all I need is Scroll or Gifts for instant kill. I play land and pass, he plays Steam Vents into Sleight and passes. My first instinct says that I’m up against Storm. I just draw something not useful and slam Baral. He smiles and plays his own Baral and we both laugh that of course we had to face the mirror! I drew Manamorphose and fire it off immediately but brick with yet another land, I just have to pass and cross my fingers. He just draws and passes, whiuh still alive. I topdeck Merchant Scroll and just fetch Gifts, Ritual, Ritual, Ritual, Ritual Gifts into Pyretic Ritual, Desperate Ritual, Manamorphose, Past In Flames and he scoops.

Basically the mirror is just all about who draws faster hand+more interaction in the form of Bolts mainly. Gigadrowse is there to tap them out before you go off.

Game 2 My hand is sweet: 2 land, Swan Song, Bolt, Electromancer, Pyretic Ritual, Gifts Ungiven. Don’t even have to think about this one, my opponent pauses for a long time but decides to keep. He leads off with Serum Visions scry goes bottom. I just play a land pass. He plays land pass. I try to stick Electromancer and he doesn’t have a Bolt thankfully. He just play another land and passes to me. At this point my hand is more than enough rituals+Manamorphose and Gifts Ungiven for the kill. Even had the Swan Song for protection. I play all my fast mana into Gifts and I show him the Swan Song, turns out he just had nothing in hand to stop me and he extends the hand. 1-0

Round 2, Affinity

Very close of friend of mine, I think he hasn’t ever beaten me before and we joke about this before we start.

Game 2 I have to mull to five and I get pretty frustrated since my hand is not great. I just keep laying lands and he gets quite a board with all sorts of robot goodness. But I do topdeck Shatterstorm to buy loads of more time and my deck just hands me all the tools I need to win and when storm is at 10, I show him 2 Grapeshots and he has seen enough.

Here we have to cut a lot of stuff to fit all of the above in, I do know that cutting all that stuff does dilute our deck a bit but we need all of it in order to have a fighting chance! Empty for a big amount is usually game unless they can find Izzet Staticaster, Bolts help clear out Meddling Mages and such, Repeal and Echoing Truth does the same thing.

Game 2 man what can I even say, exactly same as game one happened. He gets a really quick start and even has two Reflector Mages for my Electromancer AND Baral. God lord I say and lose. 1-2

Round 4, RG Ponza

At this point I was a bit bummed that i had lost two reasonable matchups, well I won’t quit and decided to play it out!

Game 1 I made a pretty bad misplay. He wins the die-roll and leads with forest into Utopia Sprawl naming red. This should be a clear indicator that you are facing ponza. My hand was very solid turn three kill with two lands. But duh I fetch Steam Vents turn one and play Serum Visions. Then he slams Blood Moon and I look at my mountain in hand, realize that I don’t have blue mana anymore. Well played sir well-played. I never found blue mana/Manamorphose either and eventually lost. Sweet.

This matchup is pretty favorable for us, after sideboard they do attack our graveyard via Relic Of Progenitus, also be wary of possible Trinisphere! Empty is also fairly good against them, though they could have boarded in Anger Of The Gods. I don’t board additional bounces in since I already have Repeal main deck.

Game 2 He didn’t see a lot from my deck so he didn’t really know how to sideboard. This time I have good hand with lands, Electromancer, Rituals and Gifts for an easy turn 3 kill and he can’t do a thing about it.

Game 1 I get a good amount of lands into play and cantrip around while he just plays lands also. Eventually I start to end of turn Gifts and force him to Spell Queller them away. Then I untap with bunch of lands, play Baral, Unsubstantiate the Queller to play my Gifts again. He obviously tried to Queller again but I Remand the Queller, now he is tapped out and scoops at the same time.

Game 2 things don’t go the way I want. My cantrips don’t find me any help and Geist Of Saint Traft kills me quickly.

Game 3 We got way into the late-game but Rest In Peace shuts me off pretty good, can’t find answer to it and Quellers+Many Bolts finish me. 2-3

Round 6, UR Breach

Final round, no chance for top 8 but I just wanted to play and have some fun so let’s do it!

Game 1 We both keep and both knew what other was playing. I don’t know what was going through my opponent’s head when he just tapped out for turn three Blood Moon. “Ok” I said and killed him on my turn three.

So in the end 3-3 is not bad, but nothing terribly exciting either. Made some misplays and definitely the loss to affinity does sting. But in any case I had tons of fun and deck was really good! Even though I didn’t really get to utilize main deck Repeal, I will keep trying it out.

As for the next time I will write a complete primer for our current Storm deck, it’s builds, sideboard plans, play patterns and so on! So stay tuned for that one 🙂